


like we're stars in a movie

by staticfiction



Category: Day6 (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, F/M, Fluff, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Warm and Fuzzy Feelings, shameless self-indulgent fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-09
Updated: 2018-11-09
Packaged: 2019-08-21 00:08:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,437
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16565774
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/staticfiction/pseuds/staticfiction
Summary: the situation is this: you need a fake boyfriend for a thing. But maybe only one of you is pretending?





	1. Sungjin | R U Mine?

**Author's Note:**

> This is a repost from my Tumblr (@daysixdreams) original publication date : June 2017

Sungjin insists on meeting the day before to establish your cover story. 

When you arrive at the cafe, he’s already seated with his iced mocha condensing at the sides. Even with his back turned to you, it doesn’t take much to recognize him. What, with his usual black shirt, jeans with rips at the knees, and his favorite sneakers, you’ll know him miles away. You brace yourself for the scowl that comes as soon as you take the seat across him, and you don’t bother with an excuse when he tuts at you for being late. 

Of course, Sungjin has a slide show presentation saved on his phone. Entitled Relationship History, it has Bob the Builder pointing out key milestones in your “relationship”. You think to yourself, when he goes off explaining using his hands more than his words, that suffering through this is not worth the prize of all your relatives finally shutting about your lack of a love life in relation to you not getting any younger.

But family reunions are The Worst, and you’d give an arm and a kidney just to not hear another unsolicited comment on your singleness.

“Why me?” Sungjin asked, the first time you brought it up about a week ago.

“Because no one will believe me if I take Jae or Brian or Wonpil or Dowoon,” you answer, half impatient, half-embarrassed. You didn’t have a choice, is what it essentially means. You don’t like going out and meeting new people, and if the band weren’t orbiting your solar system you would have had no one. At all.

In any case, Sungjin agreed. For the low, low, price of hanging out with Wonpil so he doesn’t bother Sungjin while you guys worked your shift at the record store. Effective immediately and until further notice.

“Any questions?” he asks after the last slide.

Brows furrowed, you look up from a crude drawing of Bob the Builder thanking you for watching his presentation. “Our pretend dating history is exactly the same as our not-dating history.”

The difference being, in this version you are in love with each other. When the truth is, most days you’re not even sure you and Sungjin  _ like _ each other. Except,  _ ugh _ , Sungjin is really cute and he makes you laugh. And on the rare occasion you do have a conversation, it’s meaningful and unafraid of depth.

Too bad you hate each other’s guts. Although...why again?

“I’m not a very good liar,” he admits. “Easier this way, if the details are based on truths.”

Taken aback by his honesty and earnestness, all you’re capable of saying is, “You’re so handy.”

With all seriousness, and all without gripping your hands, he responds, “I know.”

The following night, you show up to your parents’ wedding anniversary with one Park Sungjin on your arm, and to say the entire clan is shocked is an understatement. Sungjin is the perfect date, the right kind of old-fashioned gentleman, and takes to your family extremely well. Too well in fact, you fear the day you’d have to break the news that you’ve fake-broken up with your fake boyfriend. 

No amount of preparation, mental or otherwise, prepares you both for the onslaught of questions. The Whens, Wheres, and the Whys. When he’s passed around relative to relative, aunt to aunt, uncle to uncle, and grandparent to grandparent for a full assessment, your stomach twists and turns.  _ Nobody is getting married _ , you remind just about everyone as you flit about the courtyard in wedge sandals that make your feet hurt. The night is spent chasing after Sungjin and making sure he isn’t being manhandled  _ that much _ , but he takes it all in with a smile on his face.

You see it, though. Sungjin cannot lie, and when the lines on his face and the tightness around his eyes spell  _ too much _ , you whisk him away, through the wooden arches and behind the peony bushes. You only notice your hand in his when, once you’re safely away from prying eyes, he lets go. Unconsciously, your fingernails dig into your palm as if seeking the roughness Sungjin’s calloused hand had left there.

“What are you doing?” he asks, subtle panic in his voice. “Your parents—”

“Will think we’re being inappropriate and trust me, nothing would make them more happier than this. Except maybe grandchildren, but let’s not go there. For tonight, I think I’ve been absolved of all my sins to this family. Seriously, thank you.”

His lips curve into  _ that _ smile. The one that is also a smirk. And maybe it’s the bubbly speaking but your knees buckle just a little bit.

“You asked so nicely.”

You cough to cover up the building silence. “You said you’re not a very good liar. You could have fooled me.”

For a moment, he really could have. The faraway look in his eyes when he told the story of the first time he asked you out— the lilt in his voice and the giddiness to his smile— you’d have believed him when he said he tried so hard to keep his cool. In reality, he was talking about that time the two of ran out for a set of errands around the city. It involved tracking down a specific set of vinyls to complete a client’s set, street food meals, and getting lost in the middle of the night.

Sungjin averts his face, and you allow yourself to study the line from his forehead, down his nose, and the curve of his lips. Part of you feared he’d look out of place in the neat lines and rows of your family, but when he came in a dinner jacket and shiny shoes, your heart sank despite how handsome he is. That is, until your eyes came to watch his fingers through his midnight hair, and there his piercings were.

“You look nice, by the way,” he says, whispers really. “I don’t think I said that yet.”

“You didn’t.” Like this, under the twinkly lights strung across the garden, you think to yourself you two could be characters in a movie. As it were, you’re already pretending.

“I was thinking it.”

A conscious hand smoothes down the non-existent wrinkles on your pale yellow dress. So used are you to hoodies and boyfriend jeans and hightops, you stutter a thank you.

“Why me?” he asks, so soft you’ll have missed it if you weren’t standing so close.

You look up—  _ up _ , you didn’t think he’s even that tall but maybe because you know trees— and now you know it’s true what they say about your breath catching in your throat. “Because I wanted it to be you.”

Then he smiles, and in this fleeting instant you know for sure that Sungjin has been speaking in truths all along. All you needed was to look in his eyes to find the key to the language he speaks.

 


	2. Jae | You Are Coralline

In theory, it should be easy. But execution is a different beast. One with sharp, massive, triple layered teeth, and the kind that smells your fear and snarls and snaps at your heels.

But desperate times call for desperate measures.

And standing in the middle of a crowded club, face to face and across the room from an evil ex-girlfriend, her new boyfriend (or whatever), and feeling the icy fingers of betrayal circling his neck, Jae thinks to himself:  _ this is a desperate time warranting desperate measures _ .

So Jae, being lead guitarist and vocalist and sometimes rapper of the hottest indie band to go around town this summer, turns to the side, makes a quick search of the perimeter, and takes action. Like a man. A manly man. Sungjin would be so proud. Or maybe not. But  _ now _ is not a time to be thinking about whether or not Sungjin will approve of his actions. Now is a time for self-preservation.

Nursing a broken heart is always The Worst. Especially when it’s borne from the startling realization that the girl you’re still waiting for has moved on and replaced you when as far as you were made aware you two were on break.

Hence, a solution to a problem.

Turning to his left, he sees you. You, in your brother’s yellow and grey flannel shirt over a black tanktop and your favorite skinny jeans and Converse. More accurately, he hears you. It’s a spirited sort of laugh that’s all out and unashamed and  _ just so comfortable _ Jae can’t help but laugh with you. Which is crazy because here he is, hurting. But damn. Your laugh is contagious.

“Hey,” he says, sliding a respectful distance into your space. “This is gonna be real weird real quick but it’s for a good cause and that cause is mending a broken heart and really, I could go on but we’re sort of on a time-sensitive thing so I’ll just get to it. I need to you to sort of, kind of, pretend to be girlfriend for like five minutes. I’m Jae, what’s good?”

You look up at him, momentarily ignoring the memes your friends are sending you through your group chat. You’re here for a mission, and that mission is not to play fake girlfriend for some cute guy in the weirdest tortoise shell glasses you’ve seen in this decade. But then again, your mission is to prove a point and Cute Guy Jae is just making it easier for you. So you say your name and go with the flow.

Five minutes turns into the rest of the night, and Jae is running out of excuses to keep you around. First it’s to annoy his ex-girlfriend. You both agree the pettiness masquerading as sheer audacity is what really sold the bit, but neither of you are fully certain it’s simply that. Second, you’re stuck together because you just both happened to be going on the same pub crawl itinerary— let’s just say the point you’re trying to prove is that you do, in fact, have a life— and going together seems like a good idea. The point of having a life meant not going at it like a loner, so you say. Third, when was the last time either of you had met someone within the same spectrum of humour? What a boring night it would have been otherwise.

“So you waited and watched the window for an hour?” you wheeze, “that’s sad!”

“It was so worth it,” Jae laughs. “You should’ve seen the other guy’s face.”

Your laughter fades in the emptiness of the street ahead. With only the flickering of the streetlamps keeping you company down this road, Jae gets this feeling of an infinite playlist opening up in a solid modern rock riff. How did you two end up here, on a search for a 24-hr cafe to stall the sunrise?

“So…” you begin. You look up at Jae and you can see in his eyes that he’s thinking. “If you could only hear one song for the rest of your life, what would it be?”

“Now that’s just unfair,” he answers, offended at the thought of choosing just one. “You’re a big meanie.”

“A big meanie.” You can’t help but smile, and you don’t even resist. Jae doesn’t hold back his laughter either. All night you’ve been smiling, it’s getting ridiculous. “That’s something I haven’t heard since Kindergarten.”

“It’s made a comeback, haven’t you heard? Get updated, you old person you.”

You and Jae keep walking down the main street, and through the vibrant city you both have come call home. The weight of the night settles into his bones, into his thoughts, and he allows himself a moment to sigh at the grey skies above. The streetlamps wink out, and a single yellow light breaks through the swathe of dawn. All Jae can think of now is:  _ I wish I wasn’t so tired. Or such a mess. _ He’s a mess and he knows it and maybe now’s not the best time for anything, not when he’s in recovery and Brian will definitely have something to say about this, and maybe it’ll go away but right now Jae knows tonight isn’t just one of those nights.

He thinks of that song he’s been trying to write all month, almost forgets all the rejections he’s received, fills with a sense of adventure. Who else but adventurers wander the streets after everyone’s fallen asleep? Though they’re just two kids stumbling through daylight, in Jae’s mind they’re more than that.

“It’s Sunday,” you blurt out.

“Yeah, it is.”

“Sunday mornings are…”

“Great.”

“They are.”

Jae’s eyes are drooping, lids too heavy to keep up with the pink light blooming on the horizon and tingeing the concrete jungle with a blush that rivals the flush on his cheeks. Why does the night have to end?

“You know my five minutes ended hours ago.” You’ve kept count only because you hold on to every second that comes after the last. You didn’t have to fall but you went all the way anyway. Some part of you is screaming this can’t be real. It’s not. Never was. You’re toeing a line and the floor could be lava.

“I know.”

“Okay, just checking. Gotta make sure you can tell the time.”

He laughs. His heart is rushing. It’s a rush that goes beyond the beating of his heart when he’s on stage and he’s pouring out his soul into a mad guitar solo. His heart is racing, and it’s racing toward something. “So I’ll see you again tonight?”

If you do this, you know the floor could be lava...but it also might not be.

So you take a breath, and take a leap.

 


	3. Young K | Good To You

It started out as a joke. 

When you posted on Twitter that you needed a date for your annoyingly perfect cousin’s wedding party, you didn’t think Brian Kang, of all people, would respond with a winky face asking when and where and what kind of boyfriend you’d like him to be. Until the following morning when he sits across you at the coffee shop where he works, looking like it’s all the holidays combined.

“There’s gonna be a buffet, right?” he begins, eyes alight. On anyone else, their black dress shirts are just that. Plain black shirts. On Brian...it’s a  _ shirt _ . As if it were advertising something more than clothes. “I can borrow Sungjin’s car. Is this a black tie thing?”

You wedge your calculator between the pages of your workbook and answer slowly. “Yes. Thank you. And no.”

“What colour dress are you wearing? Should we go matchy-matchy?”

“It’s a…” You flash back to shopping with Wonpil for the perfect dress. By the end of the afternoon, you were about to cry from frustration because nothing looked right on you. Until finally, Wonpil spotted the color from a small boutique hidden amongst the busy street. “Deep wine red...ish colour. And you don’t actually have to…”

“We’re a couple, right? Couples go to these things all matchy-matchy.”

  1. You don’t remember agreeing to anything. It was joke. You didn’t think anyone would take you seriously when you posted that tweet.
  2. You don’t even have to come with a date. You know in your heart there’s nothing wrong with being single. It’s just that maybe weddings are the worst events to go to alone, and just maybe you don’t want to go alone. (Not when your cousins will be there, and kids from high school will be there, and let’s just say they made a habit of making fun of you growing up and your petty heart just wants to show them up.)
  3. You and Brian don’t even know each other that well? The most you can say about him is that he knows exactly how you like your usual drink and that sometimes when you hang out with Wonpil and Dowoon, he sticks around. Because they were in a band. And Brian plays bass. While working at the coffee shop and majoring in Business Management.
  4. How are you supposed to act like a couple with someone you actually want to be a couple with?



“That’s not really necessary…” you stutter.

“Of course, it is,” he states, matter-of-factly. “I’m a really good boyfriend. You can put that on record.”

Except, he isn’t yours. Not really.

But it’s too late to think about the repercussions because now Brian is charming the pants off  _ everyone _ . It’s not enough that he looks  _ too good _ in a deep red button-down and dress pants. He just has to  _ be _ good at everything there is to being a boyfriend. You’ve had those in the past, though they never really worked out, and most never even made it past a handful of dates. But nothing quite compares to the way Brian treats you. From the way he always has his eyes on you, the way he always has one hand on you, and the way he hangs on to every word you say— it’s a little too much your heart can barely keep up. 

Despite what people may say about you, you are not naive. You know that when something is to good to be true, it probably is. So you know better than to believe Brian’s smiles or his compliments. When your cousin’s friends from high school (she was the popular pretty one and you were the bookish one who wanted to be a veterinarian) voice out their doubts about this thing you have with your date, you try not to let it show that they’re right. For all you know, the joke’s on you all along.

“What’s wrong?” he asks when he brings you a glass of water to your table. You’re the only two left, everyone else has gone off to dance the night away.

“Nothing’s wrong,” you reply. “You really don’t have to do any of this. Coming with me is fine. Is plenty, really.”

“Do what?” Either Brian is a talented actor or he has no idea what you’re talking about. “I’m not doing anything special. Yet.”

There it is, that wink of mischief you’ve too often seen in his eyes.

“Did someone set you up to do this? Who was it? You can tell me. Did you lose a bet? Are you trying to win a bet? I promise I won’t get mad.”

He laughs and the sound pierces through to your heart. “You make me sound like a man in a movie.”

“Why are you doing this?” you ask, unable to look him straight in the eye.

“Because you asked? I mean, you asked, like, a hundred or so people. Publicly. And you’ve seen the buffet, right?”

“I’m serious.”

He glances down, takes a moment, then looks up again. “If I promise to answer your question honestly, will you dance with me?”

This is it, you think. This is the part where he breaks your heart and embarrasses you in front of everyone. Steeling your nerves, you take his hand and follow him to the middle of the dancefloor. Best to get it over with. Being made fun of at your cousin’s wedding still isn’t the worst thing that could happen.

Brian takes your hand and wraps his arm around your waist.  _ Too close _ . Too close, you can’t breathe. His lips hover above your ear, and his gentle exhales send shudders all over your body. At least, when it all comes crashing down, you’d have this moment to look back to. It’s not bad at all. For a little while, you felt beautiful in someone’s arms.

“The truth is,” he murmurs, “the honest truth is…”

Your chest tightens and your hold on his shoulder stiffens.

“The truth is I’ve been asking you out for a while now but I don’t think you took them seriously so when you needed a date...I thought finally this is my chance.”

You pull back just enough to gauge the sincerity in his eyes. “What?”

“I asked you out to see a movie and you brought Wonpil with you. I asked you out to dinner after band practice, you brought the entire band with us. I said maybe we should—”

“You were asking me? Just  _ me _ ?”

He touches his nose to yours and your eyes flutter close. “I wasn’t sure if you were just giving me a hard time or if you really didn’t believe  _ I am serious about you. _ ”

You muffle your squeal against his shoulder.

“This means I’m your real boyfriend now, right?”

“What? I never said that.”

“Come on, this means we’re official.”

“No, that’s not what I said—”

“Yeah, but that’s what you meant, right?”

This boy, so happy. You haven’t even fed him dessert yet. “I take it back.”

“You can’t take it back!” He twirls you in his arms and holds you close again, swaying ever so gently against the music. “I’m your boy now. I’ll be so good to you.”

Who knew Brian Kang could be so annoying.

 


	4. Dowoon | Shut Up And Dance With Me

As far as Dowoon is aware, you asked him.

So when the entire band shows up, complete with Ayeon and Jimin, Dowoon begins to question just what you’re getting yourselves into. Because last he checked, the only reason you and him are out together this fine summer day is because the coupons you got to the aquarium are for couples only. It’s not even as if management is checking for legitimacy of the said relationship. All you needed to do was show up with a supposed significant other and you get your free all-day passes. Dowoon just happened to be there when you were looking for someone to join you.

You asked. He said, in a lot less words,  _ okay. _

So now, Jae is pretending (badly) with Jimin, Brian is  _ pretending to pretend _ with Ayeon (they’re terrible at this, everyone knows), and Sungjin (poor guy) is stuck with (a too happy) Wonpil. And they’re all pretending not to follow you and Dowoon around.

Which is fine, Dowoon is used to having his bandmates prying into his personal space if only because he’s the youngest and they don’t have lives. For the most part, they’re not really much of a bother. If he doesn’t look over his shoulder and if he keeps his periphery narrow, it’s almost as if you two were alone.

Now if only he could ignore the increasingly ridiculous messages he’s receiving on the group chat. He can, in principle, not read them. But there will be serious repercussions and, truth be told, he’s not sure just how much he can get away with when it comes to matters such as this. So he doesn’t risk it and speed reads through a dozen messages per minute when he thinks you’re not looking.

Most of it is the members arguing amongst themselves about how Dowoon should be acting on this “date”. Brian and Wonpil agree that he could be sweeter, perhaps try to hold your hand or at least make small talk. Jae stresses the importance of being oneself and that’s all there is to it, to which Sungjin responds (and Dowoon can  _ hear _ their leader scowling at them)  _ just leave him alone. _

Dowoon utters a silent prayer thanking Whoever is Up There for their leader.

Other than the minor inconvenience of dating the band, Dowoon is having the time of his life with you. You may not think it, at least at first blush, but do not mistake Dowoon’s  _ cool as a cucumber _ demeanor for anything it is not. He’s smiling on the inside. Not so much on the outside, because the truth is he’s nervous. He may not think he’s awkward, but you do.

And you assure him, with your sweetest smile, that all this is okay.

More than okay.

Even better when your day out becomes a game of hide-and-seek with the rest of Day6. It’s not a decision that came about through words. You and Dowoon don’t even need to communicate which direction to take or why. It’s the subtlety of the moment, of the tilts of his head and the dips and rises of the corners of his mouth, little things you’ve learned to read over time. Like a seed you’ve planted in the soil, watered, and given enough sunshine, this, whatever it is you have with Dowoon is rearing its first fresh green leaflings.

So when he takes your hand in his, it all feels so natural, so  _ organic _ , nothing about it is awkward at all.

They almost catch up with you by the turtle sanctuary. You like turtles, and Dowoon doesn’t mind staying a little longer watching them go about their days. Until, that is, you hear Jae and Jimin arguing loudly about who lost Dowoon first from one side, and Wonpil’s thoughts-out-loud in tandem with Sungjin’s silent tears frustration from the other. So you take the only other option left to you and go down to the aquarium. Where you run into Brian and Ayeon. There’s a moment of loud silence buzzing between the two of you and them, but it fizzles away when Ayeon smiles so bright Dowoon averts his eyes.

That’s it, really. That’s all it takes and you’re all on your merry way, nothing to see here. Brian will thank Dowoon later, promising to return the favor one day, but Dowoon will say it’s nothing.  _ That’s what brothers do, right? _ (Likewise, Dowoon will forgive the rest of them for the same reason. You will tell him to at least make them suffer an hour, but Dowoon can’t even manage that. Your heart will swell, just a little bit more. And you will kiss his cheek, and he will turn the brightest shade of pink.)

When the sun winds down, and when the band has exhausted their energy for the day, you and Dowoon sit down on a bench and continue to pretend you don’t see Jae’s overly blonde head sticking out of the bushes a couple of paces back.

Dowoon buys you cotton candy and you get him a fizzy drink.

(Somewhere, Sungjin comments it’s like watching two five year olds discover love for the first time. Wonpil will  _ aww _ and Sungjin will regret this decision for life.)

You pinch off a piece of cotton candy and push the pink sugar into your mouth. “What do you think would happen if we actually were dating for real?”

Dowoon purses his lips, takes a long moment, then nods with a silent determination that moves the universe. “Let’s find out, then. Would you like to go out with me for dinner this weekend?”

“Why wait until this weekend? I’m hungry.”

“Okay. Now?”

Of course, now.

 


End file.
